2 seasons of soccer at the township peewee league, and 1 season of swimming.

Click to expand...

i see. those are great sports to go with tennis. swimming because it is such a great workout and soccer for footwork. i have played defense my whole soccer life and from early on that is one thing i was taught to do, and that if you go straight at the ball you are leaving yourself wide open to be juked or overrun it.

The big thing here and I'm sure most of you realize this, is to keep the game/activity fun and always try to quit BEFORE the child wants too. You might be able to stretch your session out a little longer with when your out there but the child is going to be more reluctant to go along next time.

You guys are on the right track though, make it fun, weave in a little "tennis stuff" when there is a chance, let the child discover things for themselves and the kids will grow to love the game. Unfortunately, many parents don't understand this process like you guys. They try and re-live/re-invent their past by pushing too much and then become frustrated with the child's lack of interest.

Balloons work wonders. Hang one from the ceiling on a string at just the right height. He will hit low to high. Then use balloons off the string.

Kids learn fast. My girl went from balloons to foam balls to low compression balls very fast. By age 3 she could hit from the baseline fairly consistently.

Click to expand...

I'll give that a try. He hits a tossed plastic baseball with a bat and a few times he hit tennis balls too but his favorite thing to do with his tennis racket is to use it as a cage for his super heros.

I'll give that a try. He hits a tossed plastic baseball with a bat and a few times he hit tennis balls too but his favorite thing to do with his tennis racket is to use it as a cage for his super heros.

Click to expand...

Try doing it yourself and acting like it is the most fun you have ever had. He may want to take the racquet away from you and do it himself.

I'm not sure about a heavy ball mattering, but the heavy racquet is probably a good thing to force core usage. In my youth, I used to make extra money doing condemned house demolition in side jobs. Swinging a sledgehammer is a perfect example of having to use the core.

The same can be said for choosing the correct bowling ball. Too light, and you end up throwing your arm out and/or lose complete ability to control the ball. Too heavy, and you end up not being able to put enough spin and speed on the ball.

When I changed to a heavier racquet (went from 8.9 to 11.7 ounces unstrung), my game instantly got better and my strokes got more consistent because I was using my whole body more as opposed to just arming it.

I'm not sure about a heavy ball mattering, but the heavy racquet is probably a good thing to force core usage. In my youth, I used to make extra money doing condemned house demolition in side jobs. Swinging a sledgehammer is a perfect example of having to use the core.

The same can be said for choosing the correct bowling ball. Too light, and you end up throwing your arm out and/or lose complete ability to control the ball. Too heavy, and you end up not being able to put enough spin and speed on the ball.

When I changed to a heavier racquet (went from 8.9 to 11.7 ounces unstrung), my game instantly got better and my strokes got more consistent because I was using my whole body more as opposed to just arming it.

Click to expand...

Rick, I like this example. Imagine swinging a lighter sledgehammer and how much more work the arms and upper body would need to do. As opposed to getting the heavier sledgehammer moving and then letting inertia take over.

Using 2 hands on both sides like that helps him automatically engage the core more.

Some coaches like Dave Smith advocate starting all beginners with 2 hands on both sides.

Click to expand...

This. When my son started playing, it took some time and practice to get him to swing properly and engage the core with a one-hand FH. My daughter is about 6 months into playing and using both hands on both sides, which from day 1 resulted in good shoulder turn and core rotation naturally.